The Library War on Christmas

Someone on the Internet told me that there’s a war on Christmas, and it so deeply disturbed me that I had to sit back with a cold martini and listen to some Miles Davis.

Actually, I do that a lot even when nothing disturbs me, so from the outside you probably couldn’t tell the difference.

And then I read this totally true account of how someone from the Atheist Civil Liberals Union (ACLU) beat up a Salvation Army volunteer for wishing him a Merry Christmas. This is shameful, shameful stuff.

After all that, I wondered if public libraries are participating in this war on Christmas. They’re public buildings after all, and we all know that the government frowns upon Christmas, which is why Christmas is a holiday for just about every government employee at every level in the country.

So I did a little investigating. It seems there are a few brave public libraries willing to do something to celebrate Christmas.

That’s what I found in 10 minutes of searching, and I began to notice a pattern. Public libraries all over the country seem to be having Christmas celebrations of one sort of another.

Then I began to wonder if maybe, just maybe, there wasn’t a war on Christmas, even in public institutions. The next thing I thought was that maybe, just maybe, I should question stuff people told me on the Internet.

That’s a good lesson libraries can teach people I guess. I’m just relieved the Atheist Civil Liberals Union isn’t beating up librarians. Whew, what a relief.

So on Wednesday, if you celebrate Christmas, have a Merry Christmas. And if you don’t celebrate Christmas, have a lovely day off from work. You deserve it.

Comments

You laugh, AL, but I find it pretty sinister that this brutal assault has not been reported in a single other news outlet. It just shows how deep the roots of the multidenominational/secular conspiracy go in this country.

I would say that that’s just what they WANT you to think, but in the interests of avoiding some sort of plaintext sarcasm rabbit hole, I’ll just go with “Yup.”

Also, for the record, my library system’s holiday graphics include a Christmas tree and a menorah, but no Kwanzaa boat. It also has a 31-day display of library programs that is similar to, but distinct from, an advent calendar. I’d give us “interested neutral” status at best in the war on Christmas.

The library where I work has two Christmas trees and no Hanukkah or Kwanzaa items. We’re closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas, and starting in 2014, we will also be closed on Boxing Day – I kid you not. So in the great Christmas war, we are squarely in the ho ho ho camp.

My previous library had a big, beautiful Christmas tree. When we added a menorah and a kinara to the holiday theme, we got complaints.

I suspect there is less “War on Christmas” and more Stores-have-been-playing-non-stop-Christmas-music-since-before-Halloween-and-if-I-here-one-more-stupid-carol-I-might-punch-someone. Thank god that libraries are quiet and don’t pump in the lame music.

As a Jewish librarian, i have no objection to people celebrating Christmas. I have no argument for getting a day off. It would be nice if my holidays were recognized. But it’s in the contract that we work on Shabbat, Saturday. And if i want to table off for Rosj hashanah, then i have to take a personal day. I’d say that makes me an annoyed librarian.

I used to work at a public library where staff were not allowed to say Merry Christmas. We had an annual winter solstice party for the staff. (One year preceded by a general staff meeting in which we all heard a one hour lecture about the importance of a winter solstice celebration and were given all the supplies necessary for that event. Most of the staff were non-drinkers, so a small number had a good time collecting bottles of wine after the meeting.)

On the other hand, same library system had an annual “Christmas party” at which staff fed and gave socks to the homeless in the community.

One library removed the artwork of Christian school children. Another library blocked a book intended for children about how to recognize and stop sex offenders because one page referred to Jesus Christ. Libraries routinely block material from “ex-gays” who are people who found Jesus Christ and cast aside homosexuality.

On the other hand, hundreds, perhaps thousands of libraries are getting ALA funded “Muslim Journeys” material that includes teaching about the faith of Muslims. The funding may include thousands of dollars and a large collection of books, etc.

Could anyone here imagine the outcry if ALA funded “Christian Journeys” material that included teaching about the faith of Christians?

As it is now, a Jewish ALA Councilor died at an ALA meeting where another Jewish ALA Councilor made the traditional Jewish prayer over the dead man and yet another ALA Councilor was deeply offended that the Jewish man dared make a Jewish prayer at an ALA meeting where another Jewish man just died. (My facts may not be perfect here but the general idea is correct.)

And let’s not forget how ALA censored out Christian speaker Robert Spencer of JihadWatch after CAIR Illinois complained to ALA that it would ever dare include Robert Spencer as a speaker. CAIR’s national presence is an unindicted co-conspirator in at least one major terrorism funding case.

Christian librarian Scott Savage experienced censorship from ALA as well when it refused to allow him to defend himself from false claims of discrimination for merely adding a single book from a Christian perspective to a list of recommended books for incoming Ohio State U freshman that so far included only leftist books.

No, I see no evidence of a war on Christmas, but I do see a differing standard for one particular religion.

My favorite moment of this holiday season: A parent complained to me because I read a book about reindeer at storytime (no mention of the Christmas or Jesus word) and told her children that the story was about ‘winter caribou.’ I laughed so hard on and off for the rest of the day that it was difficult to give people the [false] impression that I can be professional. I mean, caribou? I didn’t know what caribou were until I was, like, 24 years old. COME ON.